Cloaker (Payday 2)
The Cloaker is a special enemy in PAYDAY 2. ''They serve mostly the same role from the original game, attacking players from unexpected angles with a kick that incapacitates in one hit, then continuing to beat down the player. They are distinguished by their green goggles and gas mask, as well as the electric sound they emit when close by. This sound is heard briefly after the Cloaker spawns, regardless of the player's position. Cloakers have 600 health (1,020 on Death Wish) but take hugely increased damage from headshots: 4.29x, in fact (3.21x on Death Wish). This is the highest headshot multiplier of all specials bar the Bulldozer. Behavior Cloakers will normally spawn in to the map by using objects such as manhole covers, ventilation grates and normal enemy spawn points. Players can normally detect their presence by the high pitch noise they emit, which sounds similar to the ringing of telephones or a holler. After spawning, Cloakers behave somewhat like regular enemies, although they are stealthy in their movements and will take alternate routes to flank players. They generally fight like regular enemies with their Compact-5 submachine gun until they get close enough to charge and kick a player, which will incapacitate a player in one hit. They are capable of performing acrobatic movements such flipping over low objects, ducking under tables to evade damage, go prone under cars, as well as crawling through vents to attack from unexpected angles. Like in the first game, Cloakers will beat downed players with their nightsticks, occasionally kicking and taunting them until they spot a new target. If a Cloaker can not find a player to attack after spawning, it may decide to hide under objects such as vehicles and large objects, or hide on top of objects attached to the ceiling to drop down on unsuspecting players searching for them, or simply wait around corners and behind doors to ambush players instead of rushing in with other SWAT units. In terms of appearance, Cloakers may appear similar to a Blue SWAT unit at first glance, although their head shape is slightly different from other SWAT units due to their goggles, and wear darker armor than the Blue SWAT. This unassuming appearance will usually allow Cloakers to blend in with a mob of SWAT units. The only time a Cloaker's appearance will stand out is when its goggles glow green after it has decided to charge a player, along with an increase in the electric sound's volume. This visual/audio warning is usually too late to be helpful, however, players that aim for the head can still kill the Cloaker before it can take the player down (usually playing the attack animation, but having no effect, and dying afterwards). Cloakers may also lie on the ground to appear dead, then suddenly roll to the side and stand up to attack. Cloakers are capable of jumping over cover in order to attack players. Do not be lured into a false sense of security just because you are hiding behind an object. They are also extremely fast and can close distances quickly. When taking damage, after incapacitating a player, or when setting up ambushes around a downed player, Cloakers will often drop a smoke bomb to further mask their movements. If a cloaker has successfully downed a player, it will drop a smoke bomb upon death. Additionally, the cloaker's kick attack has a short cooldown period of around 10 seconds. It is extremely vital that a cloaker is killed before trying to revive his victim as he can wipe out the entire crew if attempting to revive downed players while he is still active. A standing Cloaker can still kick if a heister is in range without emitting the traditional ringing noise, so keep an eye out when moving through tight spots as they have a particular habit of ambushing players silently this way. As of the Death Wish update, Cloakers will occasionally 'team up' with Tasers in an attempt to quickly incapacitate the crew. As of Update #25, Cloakers can now perform side flips and quick jump recoveries in attempts to dodge bullets. Strategy Cloakers have roughly double the amount of health when compared with the next toughest special unit (Taser), but they take much more damage from head shots than other specials with the exception of the Bulldozer. It is recommended to take them down from afar, although any weapon capable of throwing a wall of lead can drop a Cloaker at close range if a player manages to get the drop on one and focus fire. At point blank range, a leveled Enforcer could quickly kill a Cloaker with a shotgun, such as the Locomotive 12G, with two rounds to the head on Overkill difficulty. Fast-firing and high-damage weapons such as the AMR-16 are also viable with good shot placement. Cloakers are extremely fast and hard to hit when on the move, but they occasionally stop to "hide" behind objects. This is an opportune time to spray them with lead. Rarely, a Cloaker's jump-kick can be dodged or avoided by moving sideways as he approaches. The jump-kick can still connect if you are running directly backwards, so be sure to move to one side as well to help throw their aim off. Sometimes moving towards a Cloaker can make it jump over you, which makes it miss and land behind you. The Cloaker jumps over tables and waist-high obstacles while executing this move. Cloakers have many hiding places, and often like to camp out near map exits and highly-traveled routes (such as the alleyway door on Four Stores, the route to the van in Day 1 of Rats, or the downhill area in Day 1 of Firestarter) or supply drops (such as the toilet in Nightclub). Whilst this often works to their advantage, it can also work against them: players can spot them from afar (and quickly gun them down) if they are hiding on the wrong side of a doorway, and use the static hiss to pinpoint the Cloaker's location and set a trap (such as a Trip Mine or Sentry Gun) or use a Frag Grenade to try and flush them out. If they wedge themselves between a wall and a door, the Cloaker can be shot through the crack between the door and the door frame with careful aim. In addition, if you hear the Cloaker's high-pitched idling sounds and cannot see a live Cloaker, keep away from large mobs of SWAT units while checking for any seemingly dead ones and fire individual shots into their heads to provoke any Cloaker who is playing dead into revealing himself and attacking. Spamming the "interact" button on corners and other spots or pointing a flashlight where Cloakers often hide is an effective tactic as well, as they will be spotted and gain a red outline. It is also possible for Cloakers to hide under vehicles (and occasionally large pieces of furniture, such as couches) where they can be nearly impossible to shoot, but any of the three sniper rifles or frag grenades can be used to either kill them or flush them out. Other common hiding places include rooftops (where they may simply lie face-down as if hiding under a car, perhaps trying to play dead) and ceiling nooks, where they can brace themselves for support and then drop down without warning, as if dropping from a vent. Vents can also be 'trapped' by placing a Trip Mine near the vent itself, high up on the wall. Cloakers seem to be invulnerable as they ''complete the drop-in animation, but not as they are first dropping down. In any of these scenarios, it is wise to keep a good distance from their hiding place unless you are intentionally trying to bait the Cloaker into attacking. Given the Cloakers' habit of setting ambushes around downed players, it is critical for players to alert their teammates after being knocked down by a Cloaker so that they can clear the area before attempting to revive. Alternatively, a Mastermind with the Inspire skill can revive teammates from a distance, although caution is still advised if you suspect a Cloaker has knocked down your teammates. A simple way to tell if a Cloaker has downed a teammate is that a kicked down player will still retain the health bar behind the bleed-out timer. Additionally, be very vigilant about marking Cloakers during heists that take place during the night or when they deploy their smoke grenade. Their camouflaged armor, coupled with their fast sprint speed, makes it quite easy to lose sight of them once they reach the shadows or when they attempt to hide inside a smoke cloud. Cloakers' spawn rate increases between Assault waves, and decreases during Assault waves due to other special units intercepting the crew. A maximum of 3–4 Cloakers can appear quickly during the cool down period between Assaults. It is strongly suggested to stay together when pushing for objectives or throwing bags and to watch your shortcuts. Unlike most enemies, Cloakers are NOT affected by the effects of ECM Feedback, so think twice before setting up a ECM jammer to cover your back. Though ill-advised, using a Cloaker as an impromptu healing method is viable, as a kicked heister gets partially healed if helped back up, and the kick does not incur a bleedout penalty for that player. This tactic is rarely used, however, and is largely frowned upon during online play, due to the fact that the kicked player may be in a hazardous situation (i.e middle of an Assault wave) where the team could not reach, and having a member in custody can cost the team dearly. It is also a rather suicidal tactic to pull off on Death Wish, as the meager amount of health regained probably isn't going to worth the trouble and, seeing how overwhelming the enemy fire is on this mode, may get the player shot down more easily than usual. Alternatively, the Cloaker who kicked the previous heister may stil linger around the site and may kick anyone attempting to rescue the downed player. Weapons for Countering Cloakers Assault Rifles Because of their versatility, assault rifles are effective against Cloakers at all ranges, although their mediocre damage per second ratings require the player to maneuver carefully as the Cloakers can take quite a few hits to the body. Shotguns Whilst most shotguns are slow to fire, they are an effective counter to Cloakers due to their extremely high damage. Without Overkill active, a high-power shotgun will need at least 2 headshots or 6–8 body shots to kill a Cloaker. Pistols In most cases pistols will be an undesirable choice for stopping cloakers, though the raw stopping power of the Deagle and Bronco can quickly halt a charge if the user is accurate enough. In the hands of a Mastermind, some of the other less powerful semiautomatics may also prove effective. Sub Machine Guns Submachineguns with large magazine size and high fire rate (Mark 10, CMP, Kobus 90, SpecOps) can quickly kill a cloaker before he can react and take you down. This is especially the case for the higher-damage SMGs like the SpecOps, which should need only ~4 headshots to kill with a maximum-damage configuration. Light Machine Guns Given their high rates of fire, large magazines, and respectable damage, LMGs are quite effective - though care should be taken, as sustained 'spray and pray' fire will likely be ineffective at all but the shortest ranges due to recoil and inaccuracy. Sniper Rifles With their slow rates of fire, sniper rifles are a poor choice for close-range takedowns. Even at range, the Rattlesnake will require two shots (both head, or one body/one head) to take down a Cloaker. The R93 will require only one headshot (or three body shots). The Thanatos, of course, requires only one shot. Sniper Rifles being able to penetrate most cover objects does have one subtle benefit; Cloakers that are hiding under cars or other objects can be 'flushed out', leaving their hiding place if they take too much damage - which makes them more vulnerable to other weapons. Alternately, the Cloaker can simply be headshot through cover with good aim. Trip Mines As mentioned before, strategically placed tripmines can be used to kill cloakers as they drop down from vents. The key to ensuring the mine works is to place it high up near the vent itself, rather than on the floor, as pictured. This also ensures passing law enforcers won't trip it themselves. Alternately, the mines could be switched into sensor mode to simply warn of cloakers dropping in at those locations. Sentry guns can serve in a similar role, as they are more than capable of ripping cloakers apart if the sentry has both damage and accuracy upgrades. cloakertrap.png|Shown from 'front' of the mine, Four Stores TimeOut. cloakertrap2.png|From side, Four Stores grocery shop. Taunts After kicking a player, the Cloaker will sometimes taunt the victim, many of which involves him comically breaking the fourth wall. Achievements Trivia * Cloakers have three styles of kicks: a roundhouse kick, a drop kick and a heel kick while doing a somersault. A video showing a render of the Cloakers kicks can be found here. *Clicking on one of the pinned pictures on the Gage Weapon Pack #02 announcement page shows the image of a Cloaker beating on a downed gangster with his nightstick, similar to what one does when taking down a player. This is not seen anywhere in-game as Cloakers do not utilize their special attack on other (non-player crew) NPCs, even after the AI script upgrade introduced via the Hotline Miami DLC update. *Also on the announcement site, Cloakers apparently issue their operatives with "state-of-the-art weaponry and equipment". Despite this, the in-game units uses Compact-5s, one of the most basic of weapons available. No other advanced gear can be observed in use by them. *The Light Machineguns offered in the pack are said to be effective counter-Cloaker weapons, with Gage instructing the crew to spray bullets into the vents and manholes that Cloakers come out of to eliminate the operative inside, though this is not easily done in-game, as Cloakers are only counted as "spawned" after they have finished their "crawling out" animation, and any and all ammunition fired into said holes/vents before that are wasted, utterly. *Cloakers in PAYDAY 2 will proceed to kick and stomp their victims in addition to the usual nightstick beating. *Cloakers are the only type of enemies that are not visually affected by the explosions of frag grenades. Other enemies usually lose their helmets or a few armor paddings, but a Cloaker hit by an explosion will remain visually intact. *A kicked player will automatically turn to face the Cloaker, unlike in the previous game where they simply drop down to the floor, incapacitated. *The uniforms worn by the new Cloakers are largely identical to the ones worn by Taser units, albeit with a camouflaged design rather than the Taser officer's black and blue. *The Cloakers were originally removed from PAYDAY 2 as getting kicked by one would cause the game to crash. *The Cloakers in PAYDAY 2 were given the nickname Spooks before the release of the game. They are still referred to as such in the job risk analysis. **The Risk Level 3 analysis used to show an image of a Cloaker, despite there being no Cloaker present in-game back then. It likely was the left over image from the beta version when these enemies are still present. *The Cloaker's appearance is very similar to Sam Fisher/3rd+4th Echelon spies from the Splinter Cell series, as well as the sound emitted when he charges is similar to the night vision goggles of the SC series. *Unlike the PAYDAY ''Cloakers, the new Cloaker variant does not dim the lights of their nightvision when charging the players. *The ''PAYDAY 2 Cloakers wear a dark grey uniform with a digital camouflage pattern that allows them to blend in better with the smokescreen they usually pop before attacking the heisters. *Despite being a stealth-based enemy, the Cloaker is one of the loudest, if not the loudest enemy in the game. However, according to the Gage Weapon Pack 2 notes, the cloaker is supposedly silent. The loud noises players are actually hearing are their encrypted radio transmissions being intercepted by their comm units, which get louder as they get nearer. *In PAYDAY: The Heist, Cloakers simply run and kick to incapacitate the player. In PAYDAY 2, Cloakers have a unique attack called the "Jump-Kick" to incapacitate the player. *The Cloaker is the only character in PAYDAY 2 who will break the 4th wall. *A newspaper for the Death Wish Update page tells that the Cloaker is a paramilitary unit. *They also seem to have a low reputation with the police force as the police considers them "unethical", likely referencing their deposition for unnecessary brutality after taking down a suspect. **Ironic, seeing how the Cloakers seem to favor blunt melee over the use of firearms (despite being armed with an SMG) and sharp melee knife attacks (which are truly brutal) employed with zero impunity and in overwhelming numbers against the player crew by other enemy types, even when the players in question are downed. ***It should also be noted that none of the Cloaker's melee attacks actually take away any health aside from the penalty incurred upon incapacitation (which doesn't even count as a proper "bleedout" phase) while almost every other enemy types can cause serious harm to their targets which will eventually send them into custody. *Incapacitation from a Cloaker's kick does not count against the number of bleedouts players may incur before automatically going into custody. This means that players with very low health can actually be healed if revived after being taken down by a Cloaker. *The Cloaker uses a unique variation of the Compact-5 modified with the Sehr Kurze Barrel, Assault Light, Tactical Laser Module, Adjustable Stock and See More Sight. It also features its own unique modifications which is a vertical foregrip under the Barrel, a unique Suppressor and a blocky straight magazine suggesting that it uses 10mm or .40 S&W cartridges instead of the 9×19mm Parabellum cartridges, meaning that it is probably based off the MP5/10 or the MP5/40. *On console, if a player kills a Cloaker as they are kicked, they will be downed but will still have their gun out and is still able to shoot. Gallery 2014-05-20 00005.jpg|The Cloaker's weapon April Fools Cloaker Cloaker.png|April Fools 2014, the "Cloaker Cloaker" Category:Special enemies (Payday 2)